Valentine's success well-documented

NEW YORK -- The call would come at 4 a.m., or, if Andrew Muscato was lucky, maybe as late as 7. On the line would be the unmistakable voice of former Mets manager Bobby Valentine.

"I'm going to the fish market," Valentine would announce, or maybe, "the cherry blossoms are in bloom!" And the 21-year-old Muscato and his two fellow NYU students would drag themselves out of bed, break out the cameras and go meet Valentine at various places in Japan.

Eight months, 500 hours of footage, and a few too many early wake-up calls later, Muscato, of Basking Ridge, and classmates Andrew Jenks and Jonah Quickmire Pettigrew produced the documentary "The Zen of Bobby V," which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and will air tonight at 9 on ESPN2. Though all three were only 21 years old during the filming, they earned the trust of Valentine and his team, the Chiba Lotte Marines, to the point that they were given access few outside a baseball team ever see.

"We've often said that Bobby roots for the underdog," Muscato, now 22, said at a recent screening of the film at Tribeca, "and there's no bigger underdog than three college kids trying to make a movie."

The idea for the film began when Jenks, as a freshman, read an article about Valentine's success in Japan and e-mailed the manager to ask if he would be interested in being the subject of a documentary. Valentine immediately responded in the positive, but it took two more years of negotiations and pitching to executives at ESPN before the project was finally green-lit.

ESPN picked up all of their costs in Japan while NYU gave them all a semester of internship credit.

Valentine was on board with the project from the beginning. Over the course of filming, he grew close with the young filmmakers and became an active participant in the filming process -- hence the 4 a.m. phone calls to clue them in to what he felt was a prime cinematic opportunity.

"Bobby's a really hands-on type of guy, and you see that in terms of the way he runs the team and the way he coaches the players," Jenks said. "So he was kind of like that with the movie also, he wanted to help us make it as good as it could be."

The film shows Valentine working out, biking, giving his team a pep talk in the clubhouse before a big game, and even shaving while wearing only a towel. The filmmakers and Valentine would occasionally go out for post-game karaoke sessions together -- scenes that failed to make the film's final cut because of licensing issues. For the record, Valentine's signature tunes were "My Way" and "Up on the Roof."

It wasn't all good-natured fun, however. When the Marines lost, Valentine would instantly turn from outgoing to out of touch.

"He took losing very personally and it stuck really close to him," Muscato said. "So when he did lose, it was really tough to get in contact with him. He wouldn't come to the park or ride his bike. Bobby just became very closed off, not only to us but to everyone in his circle."

Muscato, who produced the film, admitted that he grew up a Yankees fan.

"But I definitely had this great respect for Bobby, enough that when I heard about him getting thrown out of the game and coming back with a mustache, I definitely admired that, and it's something that stuck out," said Muscato, who finished his last set of finals at NYU last week. "Even as a Yankees fan I would still cheer for Bobby and the Mets."

Valentine is now in his fifth season as coach of the Marines, who he led to a championship in 2005. The film shows how Valentine has flourished in Japan, becoming close to fluent in the language and fighting to improve the quality of Japanese baseball. And then there's his iconic status, with burgers, beer, and even a street named after him.

Valentine couldn't make it to New York for the film's premiere because he is in the middle of the season and couldn't be reached for comment, but he told New York magazine he was thrilled with the project.

"I did have some concerns. Eight months -- that's a long time," he told the magazine. "But they were very special, wonderfully intelligent and creative. And I can say it was the greatest experience of my life, hanging out with three 21-year-olds."

Next up for the trio of young filmmakers will be continuing to promote "Bobby V" and then a break to recover before starting work on a yet-to-be-determined new project. They know they got a little spoiled this time around, with such a willing subject and supportive backing from a company like ESPN.

"We'd love to work with ESPN again," Muscato said, "but being that we're really young, we'll take what we can get."